[TextMate] Why there is no preferences window (was: Preferences window)

[Andrew Green]

On Thu, 7 Oct 2004 11:05:15 +0200, Allan Odgaard wrote:

> On 7. Oct 2004, at 10:05, Johan Sörensen wrote:
>
>>> The trouble is -- what if you only wanted to change the font for the
>>> current document? Perhaps I'd like to see the document I'm working
>>> on right now in a bigger font, or I'd like to treat tabs differently
>>> temporarily. Under the current system, it ain't temporary.
>
> How would moving the stuff to a preferences window make it temporary?

What Johan wrote was quoted from me, so I'd like to take a stab at 
answering:

* The font settings you apply in the preferences window would stick.
* The ones you apply using the regular menus wouldn't.

If I wanted to change a font forever, I'd adjust it in preferences. If I
wanted to change it, temporarily, because of the needs of the current
document, I'd change it in the menus.

This is even more pertinent outside of the realm of fonts. I might want
to enable overwrite mode for the document I'm currently working on, just
for the time that I'm working on it. But in general, I want to stay out
of overwrite mode. Under the current system, even if I quit the program
after I've made the changes to a specific document that I wanted to make
in overwrite mode, I have to remember that the program has "helpfully"
remembered that I made that change, and I have to switch back out of it.

I'm not suggesting that TM should remember the settings on a 
document-by-document basis; simply that adjustments you make using the 
menus
shouldn't linger with you until you remember to change them again.  
Permanent changes are what a Preferences panel is for.

Another example (there are plenty): I'd like to be able to switch line
numbering on, temporarily, and not have to turn it off again for other
documents or when I quit the program.

If I change what I "syntax highlight as" in the menu, to be consistent
with the current system, this should "stick" as well. If I want to
syntax highlight as HTML *now*, surely I want to syntax highlight as
HTML *forever*. No? Then perhaps I might want to be able to temporarily
change other settings too.

Cheers,
Andrew.
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      article seven       Andrew Green
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